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| Dlr: West |
♠ J 7 6 4 |
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| Vul: E-W |
♥ 7 6 5 |
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♦ 10 7 |
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♣ 10 9 6 5 |
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♠ 8 2 |
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♥ A Q J 2 |
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♦ A K Q J 9 4 2 |
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♣ — |
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East opens 1♣ in third seat and you overcall 5♦. There must be a better way to bid this hand, but you can’t figure out what it is. Everybody passes and West leads the ♣K. You don’t catch much of a dummy, but hang in there, think positively and plan the play.
How does playing a 9% contract grab you? That’s what your chances are. You must lose two spades tricks, so you can’t afford to lose a heart trick. It’s time to use your imagination and place the opponents’ cards exactly as you need them and then play for that layout. It’s called a positive assumption. It is also called “thinking big” and “needing a miracle.” How would you place the opponents’ cards to make 5♦?
A good start would be to assume that East has ♥K x x (18%), the only lie of the suit that doesn’t produce a loser. Even so, you would need to take two heart finesses, so you need two dummy entries. Well, wish upon another star. Wish that West has the ♦8 so you can lead a diamond to the 7 to gain a second dummy entry. And don’t forget to ruff the opening lead with the 9 (or an honor). You want to make sure you have two dummy entries in diamonds if West has the ♦8.
Because finesses work only 50% of the time, you are now playing a 9% contract. As sad as this is, it is still better than playing a zero percent contract.
When you are in a desperation contract, envision a winning layout and go for it! Play to make! Miracles happen. The full deal:
| Dlr: West |
♠ J 7 6 4 |
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| Vul: E-W |
♥ 7 6 5 |
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|
♦ 10 7 |
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| ♠ K 10 5 3 |
♣ 10 9 6 5 |
♠ A Q 9 |
| ♥ 9 8 3 |
|
♥ K 10 4 |
| ♦ 8 6 |
♠ 8 2 |
♦ 5 3 |
| ♣ K Q J 3 |
♥ A Q J 2 |
♣ A 8 7 4 2 |
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♦ A K Q J 9 4 2 |
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♣ — |
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